I have been doing research about LA service prices. I am finding the majority of LA quilters charge by the inch, and this amount is subject to how dense the quilt is to be stitched. Such as .01 for open meander, .02 for medium, .03 for dense, .04 for custom designs, so forth and so on. Then there are extra charges such as $10 to seam the backing, $10 to square the quilt top, $30 to add borders, $8 to press the quilt top....(these are just rough amounts, I'm not quoting any professionals pricing here)

Well, it all gets a little confusing, so this is my question. Do any LA quilters -- that you know of -- charge a flat hourly rate? If not, why not? If you are a quilter that hires LA service, would you rather pay an hourly rate? If so, why? if not, why not?

Very few LA quilters charge a flat rate according to the size of the quilt. Is it unwise to charge ---- say $50 to LA quilt a crib size?

I have come across a few LA machine owners that rent time on their machines. Do any of you do that? Is it profitable?

Thanks for your help, I appreciate your comments. :)

I have read that some LA quilters do charge by the hour, but, I've never met one!
I don't really find the 'caffeteria' style charges a problem. If anything, it encourages the person bringing the top to do as much of the work up front to avoid additional charges. For instance, it's my opinion that you should square up and thoroughly press the top before dropping it off.
I'll be curious to see other's opinions.
As far as renting out the machine, it's an expensive item and i wouldn't want just anyone using it. Also, there are liability issues.

HI,
I may be able to help you on some of your questions. I am a LAQ. I think as far as charging an hourly rate....in most cases it is fair to the customer to charge by the size of the quilt...rather than hourly because every quilter works at their own pace. Some quilt slow...some quilt fast.
It is the same for renting a long arm...I just bought my second machine...I will rent it out to quilters...I would rather charge by the size of the quilt and just give the person however much time they need (within reason)..so they aren't racing to get their quilt done...I want them to feel happy with their own results and enjoy the process. Some may quilt fast...some others may not.

I think some quilters actually do charge a flat rate...for certain sizes...but it is usually for a specific type of quilting...like pantograph quilting or E2E ...that sort of thing.

I hope that helps.
C

I forgot to say...I don't think renting out time on my machine will be profitable....maybe I am wrong. I mean I would have to rent lots of time out on it and you have to take the time to help load it...thread at and roll the quilt. I am hoping to rent it out to people who will not need me as much...but in the beginning there will be a few. So I guess what I am saying is I am not experienced enough to know if that is really all that profitable...but I haven't herd that it is.

Locally we have 2 shops that I visit. One charges .01 a square inch and the other one .015 a sq. inch. Dizzy Divas is who I use, so the quilt I need done is 60" x 60" and will be $36.00. They will quilt whatever you want. I guess one might be more if you want to go really fancy, but I don't know for sure.

I was with a group of LA'er taking LA classes and this was an interesting topic.

Personally it makes more sense to me. After you get enough practice you can generally know a ball park figure.

For example:
-set up time
- guestimate of quilting time
- take down time
- an other time spent such as ironing or sewing backing

ali

Down here the shops that do rent out machines charge a fee for a one time [more if needed] class on operation of the machine. Then after that it is the hourly, 1/2 day, or day rate. There are some LA'ers who do use it for whole days too.

Maybe you could charge that learning fee also.

ali

I wish you lived closer... I would be a repeat customer for the rental you are adding!

me too!

Thanks ladies!

I just googled the distance... about two hours... hmmmm. Maybe you are close enough?? lol. :) :lol:

Yes a few longarmers charge by the hour. They guesstimate the amount of time and therefore the amount of money the quilt will cost. Most charge by the inch, which is what I do.

Quilting charges vary widely based on many factors including the region, the type, density and difficulty of the quilting designs, and the skills, talents, or fame of the quilter.

Thank you all for the sharing your knowledge and opinions. My hubby is working on his thesis for a Master's Degree and this is research he asked me to do. He is setting me up in a pretend LAQ business.

This pretend business may one day become reality because I have recently ordered the Handi Quilter Avante. It will deliver next week and I can't wait! I hope I get the hang of it quickly --- I can be so impatient.

Thanks again --- keep your opinions coming!

I've been renting Gammill Long Arms for 5 years. We started with 1 and within a year I bought a 2nd. We currently have 3 hand guided machines and 2 Statler Stitchers. Rental and classes are working well for us! We also quilt for people and charge by the inch as you described. I do find that some of my customers that rent "speed quilt" to save money as we charge $20.00 per hour. I would like to see them slow down to improve their work, not to add to my profit. But I haven't tried a different rental rate yet.....but food for thought!

I just visited your website and read your story about how you got started in your business. Very impressive! Congratulations and I hope you continue to grow and live your dream!

Giving flat rate rather than by the hour benifits both pro and customer. The customer knows exactly how much its going to cost ahead of time. The Pro does not have to Justify the price , it is what it is. I can see if its hourly the customer would never really know .. "did I really get what I paid for?". On the other hand LA quilters can end up spending lots of time with a poorly constructed or prepared for quilting quilt top , that they had not anticipated. Many will call the person prior to starting the quilting to discuss the condition ( delicately) and explain why extra effort and charges are in order.
I send out many tops and doubt I would ever feel completely comfortable in a hourly unless there was a "not to exceed" dollar amount in the contract. Having said that I did have such a agreement and ...well it was exaclty the top do not exceed $$ and the quilting was less than what I expected for that price. It was a very generous amount and I had expectations of it being "competition" worthy when done. It was not.
My best experiences have been with LA'ers here on this board . I have seen their work which is consistant in what I look for in design and technical , I trust they will have a vision , and I let them do what they do best. Consitantly both of them , have given me a good indication of what they have in mind for the quilt top , and yes I am always pleased that they exceed my expectations.
In the end if you are looking for LA services , find one that you want to have a long realtionship with because you have confidence in their work and the way the run their business.
If you are thinking of starting a business learn from the best practices of those LA professional whom you respect.
People who use LA services go back again and again to the person they trust. And the old saying in business for every lost customer .. it takes 10 new one to replace them.

If you are interested in real start up costs, PM me.

There's a lot more to buy besides the machine, and it all costs good money, and almost all of it needs to be ordered on the web and delivered to you. Shipping charges are a big "invisible" business expense these days.

This is very generous of you, and of course, I will send a PM. Thanks!

My local LA charges by the quilt. The last queen size she quilted for me was $70. She does beautiful work but only does stippling, meandering and swirls. If I make a quilt that is very special, I like to have it custom quilted.

I am a longarmer. I charge by the sq. inch according to the denseness of the design. I stock 2 battings and charge per sq foot for those. I try not to nickel and dime my customers by adding a lot of extra charges...pressing, re-pinning for borders, etc. If I see that there will be extra work, I just add a little into the charge per sq foot. I only have one Gammill and would NOT even consider renting it! I have been in business for over 5 years and love what I do.

You will love youe Avante--love mine. The larger size from the HQ16 is amazing.

let me ask this here: LAQ, if I make a top (Im finally getting my sewing room done!) and need to have it quilted (this is the part I dont like to do - lol) do I put the batt in and the backing and baste it together before I send it to be quilted?? I never had one quilted by anyone else before and am thinking I should start to do this if I want anything finished before I die sharet

Interesting Topic, I've wondered about taking quilts to a LA to learn, and do myself. Don't know what a "fair" price for that type of service would be.

I do not do LAQ, so I send all of my quilts out. My favorite quilter charges by the square inch, fee is greater if I want custom work. He adds a fee for thread color changes. All of his work is free motion - no pantographs or digital designs. He give me a quote before he starts the work. I have come to appreciate his skill and artistry, and would trust him doing any of my tops. I don't look for cheap. After spending my time piecing a top, I will pay for quality quilting.

We have both "per inch" and "per hour" available in our area. The "per inch" does all the work for you and delivers a finished product. The other involves you renting a either a manual or a computerized machine. You sew on the zipper yourself for both. For the manual, you can use either a pantograph or free motion. For the computerized, you choose the pattern. The employee is there to help as needed. There is also a flat rate thread charge, depending on whether the pattern is considered light/medium/heavy. Average charge for a lap sized quilt is about $50. The computerized machine is booked solid Jun-Jan. Don't think the manual one is booked as much. Guess the difference is whether your quilt is a show piece or not.
Personally, I like the feeling of completing an entire quilt myself and the rent option fills that need for me. I don't however like paying a flat rate thread charge. The charge for one quilt pays for the entire large cone of thread.
Will follow this thread closely as I have also wondered about the profitability of buying a LA.

You do not do any of the sandwiching if you are sending to a LA quilter. Just send top , backing and batting seperate. Some LA quilters have battings ( additional charge).
Once I discovered LA quilters .... it was truley life changing. I really really do not like the quilting part on a big quilt.

I used to go to my LQS and rent time on their non-SR machine. I paid by the hour, no minimum time, but had to make an appointment. That was after taking their 5 hour class to learn their machine (Nolting, now Gammill).

They also have a fully tricked out Gammill with Statler Stitcher that they use for custom quilting. They charge by size and work on that one, plus if someone wants a pattern they don't have, they share the cost with the client for the new (to the store) pattern for the Statler. They have a book with patterns that the store already has for the Statler as well as ones that can be ordered.

The LQS near where I live now also does the same, but charges twice what I paid for rental with a 2 hour minimum.

I am also one who likes to do the whole quilt from beginning to finished. Therefore, I am finally getting my own LA in about a week (Innova 26" w/ lightening stitch) and can't wait. We now have room for me to have a LA. I don't know if I will do a business, but will probably do a lot of charity work besides my own projects.

Good luck with your plans.

i want to know if there is an airport close to the lady in washington state....have taken lessons on a mid arm and loved it....absolutly loved it, it was like dancing....but the instructor passed away and the shop is being sold and it was a 2 hour each way drive.

is that at Nancy's.....i know the way there from the airport

No, it's Always Quilting in San Mateo for my old shop. Good people.

The other is Quiltique in Henderson, NV. Also good people.

I'm getting my LA from Teryl Loy in St George.

Just to add my two cents as a LA quilter. Flat fee verses square inch fee- Not all quilts are created equal. I have quilted some quilts that the customer has called a double and it measured more in the king category. So if I charged according to "a double", I would lose money and time spent on the quilt. The square inch method of charging seems fairer to me cause no matter what size the customer thinks it is, I have a reasonable return for my labor and time. Like someone else said, I don't nickel and dime my customers to death. The end cost may reflect a small increase to the square inch figure for seaming backs and etc. My prices start at .0125 per inch for meandering and upward from there depending what the customer wants. Does this help?

I can never figure out what I'm going to pay. I know if it's custom I'm going to pay out the a--. One of the LQS will let you rent the LA'r but at $125 an hour and no experience I'd end up spending more.

Just a few comments: All the longarm quilters that I know charge by the SQ Inch (not inch) LXW=Sq Inch. I know one lady who charges by the bobbin. Most longarm quilters do not charge by the flat rate. I don't because it is more difficult to figure out why/how to charge, (and explain it to my customer) when it is easier to just tell the customer what the rate is for the square inch. It is also difficult to keep an accurate accounting of the time it takes to quilt something, when charging by the hour, because of interruptions, etc.

The reason for different prices (per sq inch) depends on the type and/or amount of quilting to be done. A longarm quilter would be (in a sense) paying you to quilt your quilt if she was to do custom quilting and only charge a flat rate or lower price that would be acceptable for doing a simple meandering price.

Reasons for all the "extra charges" you are referring to, such as piecing the back, pressing, etc. is; these are very time comsuming tasks and your longarm quilter just wants to quilt your top and move on to another top to quilt. They do not want prepare the top (pressing, clipping threads) for quilting or finish the quilt, i.e. binding, unlelss they are paid for their time.

It may sound like a lot of money to pay to have a top quilted, but longarm quilters are not getting rich off of their customers.

Hope this helps. Ellen

I do longarm quilting for others and I do charge by the inch. That said, I would not want to pay by the piece, i.e. $50.00 for a baby quilt, because I know the quilter would be hustling through the quilt, in git-r-dun mode, and I know I would not be happy. The only time I do charge by the hour is when I m doing ruler work - it is very slow process to get it lined up correctly compared to doing free-motion quilting!

I charge by the square inch. It takes time to load a quilt, choose thread and pattern. If I have a quilt that is 60x80 that is 4800 square inches. My base price is 1.8 cents per square inch. That quilt is $86.40. If I meander, it will take me about 20-30 minutes to load, time to wind bobbins and thread the machine. Meandering a quilt that size may take an hour and a half. I am now into this for 2+ hours. That also doesn't take into account trimming threads, and keeping the quilt straight as it rolls. Was the backing ironed before it came in? Was it pieced? I now have wear on my machine, electricity, and I don't charge for thread.
How do you put a price on your time? This is the most stressfull yet most rewarding job I have ever had. What if the customer doesn't like what, did I choose the right color thread, and so on...
Thats my two cents of how I charge!

I rent out time on my LA (HQ Avante) I offer a two hour lesson to get the new clients familiar with the machine and take them through as many of the different types of quilting as I can within that time. Customers can then rent the machine at an hourly rate. The time it takes them to quilt will depend on the type of quilting they want to do and the size of the quilt.
I am not sure if we will ever be really profitable but the clients we have had so far love the service we offer, they get to complete their projects themselves, and I get to meet lovely people and can put some of the income we receive to offset the money we paid for the machine. Everyone wins!!!

Wow! That is a terrible hourly rate!!! Come to Canada and pay $15 per hour and I am happy to be on hand with advice and help all the time you are here! lol

I have been a longarm quilter for seven yrs. I charge by the sq. inch. My prices vary according to what my client wants done on his/her quilt. Basically a loose meander would be $.01 per sq inch. Price would rise accordingly if more dense quilting is desired. Prices for pantograph work also varies according to density and complexity. Panto prices start @ $.0125 per, sq. inch. Custom work also is priced according to density and complexity of design. In general I typically charge $.03 - $.04 for dense custom quilting.
I personally don't know of any quilters in my area that charge by the hour though there may well be some that do.
On occasion I have rented time on my Gammill for people to quilt their own quilt but honestly don't have that many clients that wish to do that. I don't have a second machine or room to add one so don't picture myself doing a lot of renting.
Another thing I do on occasion is to barter for services with a client. It's a win win situation for both myself and the client.

Reading the posts so far, all of a sudden the beautuful work I've seen from Marilyn Badger came to mind - can you imagine how much one of her masterpieces must be worth in quilting labor alone?

When a LA quilter charges by the hour, how will they 'prove' to you that they spent XX hours on it? For estimate purposes, it seems much more tangible to quote by the inch. The reason for the 'other' charges you mention is that when you drop a quilt off to a longarmer, it is expected that the top and back are ready to go. If it creates extra work for them, then there are additional charges. There are some who don't like to piece their own backs, so we longarmers will do that for you, but not for free. :) Time is money in any industry. If we take time away from the actual quilting of the quilt, there are costs associated with that time.

A huge Thank You to everyone for sharing so much information in this discussion. I think it has helped clear up a lot of misunderstanding about how a professional determines their charges. I want to encourage everyone to have those unquilted tops finished up! There are so many options out there ---- from machine rental to bartering for LAQ service, and just about everything in between. Thanks!